Ashley's POV:
The morning sun spilled through the half-open blinds, painting Ashley's room in shades of gold. She stretched, hair a wild mess, grinning at her reflection. Another day at Crestwood High — and somehow, she was actually excited about it.
By the time she reached school, the courtyard buzzed with laughter and chatter. Mia, her best friend since kindergarten, waved like a maniac across the lawn.
"Girl, you're late again," Mia teased, handing her a chocolate milk.
"Fashionably late," Ashley corrected, taking it with a smirk.
Their day rolled on in that easy rhythm of teenage normalcy — jokes during math, whispered secrets in the hall, a group selfie at lunch that Ashley somehow made perfect without trying. Everyone knew her. Teachers liked her, classmates adored her. She was the kind of girl who could turn detention into a group therapy session and still leave with everyone laughing.
By the final bell, Ashley was tired but glowing — the kind of tired that felt earned.
At home, her world felt just as warm. The scent of her mom's cooking wrapped around her as she entered.
"Hey, sweetheart! How was school?" her mom called from the kitchen.
"Normal chaos. I survived." Ashley dropped her bag and bounded upstairs.
Her room was her kingdom — books half-open, fairy lights framing the window, a Polaroid wall of memories. She changed, washed up, and dove into her homework. Time slipped away like it always did when she got serious.
"Ashley! Dinner!" her mom's voice finally broke through the hum of music in her earbuds.
She hurried downstairs, helping her mom set the table with her usual enthusiasm. Her father came home, smelling faintly of aftershave and the city. Dinner was filled with laughter, stories, and clinking cutlery — the picture of a perfect family evening.
Between bites, her mom said casually, "Oh, by the way, your brother's coming home this weekend."
Ashley's eyes widened. "Wait—really? Finally!"
Her mom smiled. "Yes, and he's bringing a friend along. Roman, I think his name was."
Ashley froze, repeating the name in her head. "Roman," she said, testing how it sounded. "Hmm... never heard of him. Do you know anything about him?"
Her mom shook her head, laughing softly. "Not much, sweetheart. Just that he and your brother are close. You'll meet him soon enough."
Ashley grinned, already planning a hundred things at once. "Then I'll show him around town! You know, all the good spots — the lake, the diner, the old bookstore. It'll be fun!"
Her mom smiled at her enthusiasm. "I'm sure he'll appreciate that."
After dinner, Ashley helped with the dishes, humming to herself, still smiling. She couldn't wait for the weekend — for her brother's arrival, for the stories, the laughter, and maybe, the start of something new.
That night, she fell asleep with a happy heart, dreaming of sunny afternoons and warm hellos — unaware that the name Roman would soon mean far more than she could ever imagine.
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Roman's POV:
The city slept under a wash of moonlight, the streets silver and still. Roman leaned against the railing of a hotel balcony, a cigarette burning between his fingers. Far below, the world moved on — cars whispering by, sirens crying in the distance — but up here, it was quiet.
He pulled a photo from his pocket. A girl smiling in sunlight. Her name written neatly on the back: Ashley Bennett.
He stared at it for a long time, smoke curling around the edges of the paper. The moonlight caught in his eyes, turning them cold.
This wasn't supposed to matter.
Nothing ever did. Not in his line of work.
But something about that picture — that smile — had caught where nothing else could. He felt the faintest twitch of something in his chest. Amusement. Curiosity. Maybe something worse.
A phone buzzed on the table behind him.
One glance at the caller ID told him it was business — one of his men, probably with another name, another problem to make disappear. He ignored it.
Roman crushed the cigarette against the balcony rail and let the ashes fall like snow.
"Soon," he murmured, voice low, almost thoughtful. "Soon, we'll meet."
Then he tucked the photo away and turned back to the darkness, the city sprawling beneath him like a kingdom built on secrets.
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Author's Note 🖤
Hey, lovely humans (and possible night creatures 👀)!
Sooo... welcome to my very first book on Wattpad! 🎉This story started as a "what if" that got way too serious — what if a bright, fearless girl met someone who lived in the shadows? Yeah... things got dark real fast.
You've just met Ashley — my little sunshine tornado — and soon you'll meet Roman... who's, uh, definitely not sunshine material. Let's just say if light and dark ever had an argument, he is the argument.
I'm still figuring out my pacing, my tone, and probably my sanity, so stick around, drop comments, and tell me what you think! 👇
Should I make the next chapter more sweet or more spine-chilling?
Who do you think Roman really is — protector, predator, or something in between?
Thank you for being here at the messy, beautiful start of this ride.
Now buckle up. Things are about to get... interesting. 😈
— Vaanni 💋